Friday, December 06, 2013

Duck Stuff: Morning Mud

Morning Mud

■ Ted Miller puts his two cents worth in on Marcus Mariota staying at Oregon for another year.

The news that probably will have the biggest impact in 2014 in the Pac-12 and nationally was Marcus Mariota's announcement that he will again be Oregon's quarterback next fall and not enter the NFL draft. That, as we noted on Tuesday, makes Oregon the 2014 Pac-12 favorite, no matter that running back De'Anthony Thomas and/or cornerback Ifo Ekpre-Olomu are unlikely to follow his example. In fact, the Ducks are a good bet to begin the season with another top-five ranking, in large part due to Mariota still being behind center -- his two-time first-team All-Pac-12 center Hroniss Grasu, no less.

■ Victor Flores also takes a look at Mariota's decision and says it reflects his true values.

The Ducks may not have made it to national championship game, there are three players who stood out this year: one offensive, one defensive and one special teams player changed the outcomes of games in a positive way this season.Because of their achievements on the athletic field, Josh Huff, Ifo Ekpre-Olomu and Bralon Addison have been named as team MVPs by the Emerald sports desk.